Colour Me Confused: Who Is Going To Die In Batman?

Okay, so I posted a few days ago about how there’s a ton of evidence suggesting that Damian Wayne is going to die in Batman Incorporated. And I suppose it’s no secret at this point that the general consensus is that Alfred Pennyworth is going to be revealed to have been horribly murdered by the Joker by the end of Death of the Family, which I will be buying this Wednesday. Here’s the thing, though, for anyone who hasn’t been following along with Batman Incorporated since the reboot began and/or didn’t read Gotham Spoilers’ article on this matter, here’s some important events to consider: The comic actually begins with a scene of Bruce Wayne and Alfred in a cemetery with Bruce telling Alfred to tell “the others” that Batman Incorporated is over right before Bruce is arrested by GCPD, and then we cut back to 1 month previously, and the story has been continuing from that point. NOW, the theory goes that Bruce and Alfred were in the cemetery visiting Damian’s grave, and that Damian’s death has driven Bruce to quitting Batman Inc.

If you haven’t figured out what’s got me confused, let me explain it to you: In Scott Snyder‘s Batman, we have Alfred possibly dying while Damian’s still alive. In Grant Morrison‘s Batman Incorporated, we have Damian possibly dying while Alfred’s still alive. THESE TWO EVENTS DO NOT MATCH. So, with that said, I have come up with a few possible explanations as to what is going to happen.

Alfred is going to live through the events of Death of the Family, thus explaining his presence in Batman Incorporated, and Damian is going to die.

Damian is going to live in Batman Incorporated, thus explaining his presence in Death of the Family, and Alfred is going to die.

Neither of them are going to die, and this has been a gigantic fake out.

BOTH are going to die and then be resurrected somehow. And let’s face it, with the existence of Black Lantern Rings, Lazarus Pits, and other sorts of methods for cheating death in the DC Universe, it’s not that unlikely.

Alfred dies and comes back as a hologram or freaky cyborg thing…because while that would be cheesy as all hell, it would also have a sort of awesomeness to it.

Both die and don’t come back, meaning either there has been zero communication between Snyder and Morrison and their respective editors on their respective projects, or one had this planned way before the other and they both just decided to go with it regardless.

Anyway, I should wrap up by stating the following: While I hope that neither one are killed off, the one thing I want most is for them both to not be killed off IN THE SAME MONTH. It just takes away any and all meaning that there could’ve possibly been behind killing either one of them off, and again, it creates a massive plot canyon in the Batman comics. So, here’s hoping at least one (preferably both) of these two characters manages to survive…OR, we at least see Alfred come back as a hologram. ^_^ Ja né!

Very excellent article Jyger. I guess it’s a matter of waiting and finding out what ends up happening on both books. But I do agree that it would create some serious continuity holes if both characters are killed anachronistically.

OR, they both die, and the Alfred we saw in Batman Inc #1 is revealed/retconned to be Bruce hallucinating him, unable to cope with the deaths of both his metaphorical father and literal son at/near the same time. It could be really well done and mirrored if Snyder has Bruce talking to Damian at Alfred’s grave, only to realize that he’s talking to no one there as well.
…But of course, it’s just going to turn out that the writers and editor(s) didn’t talk, and this won’t be resolved, and people will start rooting for who their favorite is, Morrison or Snyder, and decide which story they like more as continuity…
…Or better yet, a year from now, we, as an audience, get the opportunity to vote, just like with Jason Todd’s death, but instead of dealing death, we get to choose life; is Alfred brought back, and is Bruce brought back to his eternal status quo of dark knight (re)returning? Or is Damian brought back, and Bruce finally abandons being the eternal child to finally become the father than Damian needs, the Batman that can be more than just the brooding gritty vigilante, but a real hero?
…And why is this the only page on the internet that seems to see this coming?